All the News We Can Find on Marriage Equality & LGBT Rights

Seriously?

Our semi-regular round-up of the crazy (and often unintentionally hilarious) things that anti-gay folks are saying about marriage equality and the LGBT community.

Today we’ll start in Wisconsin, where a town Alderman is none too pleased about the new gay pride parade planned there. Towleroad.com reports:

Progressive blog Blue Cheddar reports today that Wausau’s 3rd District Alderman David Nutting is telling residents to physically turn their backs to the parade: “I represent an overwhelming majority of district 3 residents who oppose allowing a parade of deviant-behaving individuals to be escorted by public law enforcement members through the very heart of our family-oriented city to a beautiful family-oriented public park where no doubt their choice of indecent behavior will be on full display for influential children and the media to proclaim it worldwide. This isn’t speech. This is behavior. I ask that all residents stay away from the parade or if you do go, stand with your back to the parade of deviant-behaving individuals.”

Also in the US, Marco Rubio doesn’t want the LGBT community to have any job protections. Think Progress reports:

KEYES: The Senate this summer is going to be taking up the Employment Non-Discrimination Act which makes it illegal to fire someone for being gay. Do you know if you’ll be supporting that RUBIO: I haven’t read the legislation. By and large I think all Americans should be protected but I’m not for any special protections based on orientation.

Ah, there it is again, the old (and I mean OLD) line about rights for gays and lesbians being “special protections”. Hey, do we have that on our Homophobic Bingo card?

Over at the Liberty Council, Mat Staver just can’t pry his fingers off the lie about a brochure created by an LGBT group at the DoJ, claiming (still) that the flier is an Obama Plot. Joe.My.God reports:

President Obama is forcing federal employees to openly affirm homosexuality and other forms of immoral behavior. The President is using bully tactics to force his immoral agenda on millions of people who come to work each day to make a living. This is shameful.

Sorry, Mat, shameful is taking something you know is a lie and repeatedly flogging it to bring yourself more power and money from folks who don’t know any better.

And finally, over in the UK, the new Pope made his first comments on gay marriage – and surprisingly, they were relatively low-key. Towleroad.com reports:

In his remarks to [Archbishop of Canterbury Justin] Welby, Francis said he hoped they could collaborate in promoting the sacredness of life “and the stability of families founded on marriage.” He noted that Welby had recently spoken out on the issue, a reference to his House of Lords testimony. Significantly, though, Francis didn’t say that marriage should be based on a union between a man and woman, which is how Benedict XVI and John Paul II routinely defined marriage.

This comes just days after Pope Francis acknowledged the existence of a “gay lobby” in the Vatican. Is the Church softening its stance on gays and marriage equality? Only time will tell.